Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Acquired by Ethic Inc.

Ethic Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 489,501 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 43,755 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $19,575,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.7 %

VZ opened at $43.60 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $43.72 and its 200-day moving average is $41.97. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36. The company has a market capitalization of $183.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.22%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total value of $212,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,550,859.84. The trade was a 12.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Profile

Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. It operates in two segments, Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business).